LOVERS by Shan

We've been on a short break the past two weeks, so we're revisiting one of our favorites: Lena Waithe on why she won't have sex with someone unless she can already picture what happens after, and why some of her deepest connections have never been physical at all. New episodes of LOVERS are back August 19.

In this episode of LOVERS, I sit down with Emmy-winning writer, producer, and actress Lena Waithe (Queen & Slim, Master of None, The Chi) for an eye-opening conversation about intimacy, love, and meaningful connections. Lena shares why you should never have sex with someone unless you can imagine a positive aftermath for both of you. She dives into how cuddling can create a deeper emotional bond than sex, especially when the future of a relationship feels uncertain. Lena also opens up about the power of plutonic relationships, revealing why some of her most impactful connections today are non-romantic. With all of the rumors about her love life, Lena sets the record straight and shares what truly matters to her in building authentic connections. This episode will challenge your views on love, intimacy, and boundaries in ways you won’t want to miss!

Thank you Lena!

https://www.instagram.com/lenawaithe/

Legacy Talk Podcast

https://lemonada.lnk.to/LegacyTalkWithLenaWaithehs?fbclid=PAZXh0bgNhZW0CMTEAAaZR0rgZOhMXnR_1HkQjiKfKa5_UUPHcXYlKFCmzjhKgXdje2qDlp8lbhmg_aem_wULmegwSQB8ct8zEmMkQfg

Want more LOVERS?Follow Shan on Instagram → http://instagram.com/shanboodramGet a free Love Letter from Shan → http://loversbyshan.com/newsletterJoin the LOVERS Community → https://www.loversbyshan.com/communityExplore free quizzes + worksheets → http://loversbyshan.com/quizzes

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We're on a short break the next two weeks, so we're revisiting one of our favorites: Cree Summer on losing (and finding again) her sex drive after 50, and why emotional safety made all the difference. New episodes of LOVERS are back August 19.

In this episode, I sit down with the legendary Cree Summer to talk about her journey through love, loss, and rediscovery in her 50s. Cree opens up about losing her sex drive during her marriage due to a lack of emotional shelter and the importance of finding a partner who provides safety and calm during life's storms. We also dive into how her sex drive has improved post-menopause and what she's looking forward to as she explores love again in her senior years.

This episode originally aired on April 30th, 2025.

Follow Cree:

instagram.com/iamcreesummer

x.com/iamcreesummer

Want more LOVERS?Follow Shan on Instagram → http://instagram.com/shanboodramGet a free Love Letter from Shan → http://loversbyshan.com/newsletterJoin the LOVERS Community → https://www.loversbyshan.com/communityExplore free quizzes + worksheets → http://loversbyshan.com/quizzes

Advertising & Other Inquiries: team@loversbyshan.com
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#AD This episode is sponsored by Daré Bioscience. DARE to PLAY™ Sildenafil Cream is a compounded drug. It is not FDA-approved. This product has not been reviewed by FDA for safety or efficacy. It is manufactured in a 503B outsourcing facility under pharmaceutical Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP).

Shan sits down with four women to talk about the low libido nobody prepares you for: the 26-year-old who kept saying "I'm supposed to be in my prime" and quietly decided she was broken, the married woman delighting in her season of stillness, and Shan's own reframe that low libido is only a dysfunction if it comes with an F word (frustrating). Then Sabrina Martucci Johnson, founder and CEO of Daré Bioscience, explains what actually happens in the body when desire and arousal stop cooperating, and why women were told for almost 30 years it was all in their heads.



Follow Sabrina Martucci Johnson

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sabrina-martucci-johnson/

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@sabrinadareceo



Follow Daré Bioscience

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/dare-bioscience

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/darebioscience/

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Learn more about DARE to PLAY™

https://daretoplaybio.com/



Unlock deeper pleasure with a roadmap designed for you — all it takes is 5 minutes. Go to https://beduc.at/bg2631-boody to learn more!

Follow Indigo MateoInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/indigomateoMusic: http://www.indigomateo.com/

Follow Jamille McClendonInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/thahealingfactor

Follow Saraijah BarnesInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/Rai.destinei Follow Brittany Johnsonhttp://instagram.com/brittbekountry

Want more LOVERS?

Follow Shan on Instagram → http://instagram.com/shanboodram

Get a free Love Letter from Shan → http://loversbyshan.com/newsletter

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Naomi Sharon is an R&B singer-songwriter, the first woman signed to Drake's OVO Sound label, and the voice behind Obsidian — an album she wrote, she says, while stuck in a loop she didn't yet have a name for. Her new single is "No Sleep in Paradise," and it turns out to be a more accurate self-portrait than she realized when she wrote it.

This conversation starts with that song title and follows it somewhere much harder. Naomi opens up about ROCD (Relationship OCD) — a form of OCD rooted, for her, in her parents' divorce at 12, the lie she found out about, and the trust that cracked in a way that never fully sealed. She describes what it actually does inside a relationship: the reassurance-seeking that exhausts even a loving partner, the rumination that colonizes every quiet moment, the specific experience of standing onstage mid-performance and suddenly being flooded with thoughts about whether he still loves her. And then the harder question underneath all of it — whether what she's feeling is her intuition or her fear, and what it costs not to be able to tell the difference.

This one is for anyone who has ever been told to just let it go and discovered that wasn't something they could do.

Want to learn more about OCD?

International OCD Foundation (IOCDF) →⁠ https://iocdf.org/⁠

Anxiety and Depression Association of America (ADAA) →⁠ https://adaa.org/⁠

National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) →⁠ https://www.nami.org/⁠

Mental Health America (MHA) →⁠ https://mhanational.org/⁠

Follow Naomi Sharon

Instagram:⁠ https://www.instagram.com/naomisharon⁠

YouTube:⁠ https://www.youtube.com/@naomisharonmusic⁠

TikTok:⁠ https://www.tiktok.com/@naomisharon⁠

No Sleep in Paradise:⁠ https://ovo-naomisharon.ffm.to/nsip⁠

Want more LOVERS?

Follow Shan on Instagram →⁠ http://instagram.com/shanboodram⁠

Get a free weekly Love Letter from Shan →⁠ http://loversbyshan.com/newsletter⁠

Join the Lovers Community →⁠ https://www.loversbyshan.com/community⁠

Explore free quizzes + worksheets →⁠ http://loversbyshan.com/quizzes⁠

Advertising & Other Inquiries: team@loversbyshan.com
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Tanerélle is a singer-songwriter whose voice sits somewhere between neo-soul and quiet revelation, with singles like feels like love and Nothing Without You building a devoted audience around the specific ache of loving someone more than they love you back. In this episode, she and Shan trace the song feels like love from its origin — a late-night phone call with an ex that felt like home until Tanerélle realized she was the only one feeling it — through the larger question of what it means to be someone's muse instead of their person, and why those two things can feel identical from the inside until they don't.

They also talk about what OCD and rumination actually do inside a relationship when safety isn't there, the slow way gender roles and social conditioning closed the door on the free version of herself she showed up as early on, and the specific kind of loneliness that comes from being the one who always reaches out first. This one is for anyone who has ever loved out loud in a situation that didn't love them back the same way and wondered whether that still counted as real.

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Thanks to Stasis for sponsoring this video. Hold your stimulant to a higher standard — go to ⁠https://yt.link/K1ZEZNN⁠ and use code LOVERS for 15% off your first order.

I'm sharing this in my personal capacity. Always speak with your own healthcare provider about what's right for you. #ad #StasisPartner

*These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.

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Follow Tanerélle

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tanerelle

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCxqYnbQ6uCZhsanm43Jk6zA

TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@tanerelle

Feels like love: https://open.spotify.com/track/6N5i4aUjLphRd77qlkpqdO

Want more LOVERS?

Follow Shan on Instagram → http://instagram.com/shanboodram

Get a free weekly Love Letter from Shan → http://loversbyshan.com/newsletter

Join the Lovers Community → https://www.loversbyshan.com/community

Explore free quizzes + worksheets → http://loversbyshan.com/quizzes

Advertising & Other Inquiries: team@loversbyshan.com
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices